A hilsa weighing 1kg 960g has been caught in a fisher's net at Kuakata in Patuakhali. The fisher, Masum Billah, sold the fish at the Kuakata fish wholesale market for Tk 6,000, according to the report.

On the night of 25 August he brought it to Rabbani Fish, a wholesale stall in Kuakata market, where it went to open auction at a rate of Tk 1 lakh 35 thousand a maund. Sohag Hossain, owner of Sotota Fish, bought it for Tk 6,080.

Md Rubel, managing director of Rabbani Fish, said Masum, a fisher from the Lembur Bon area, went to sea on Monday afternoon and the fish came up as soon as he hauled in his net. "He always sells his fish at my wholesale stall. Now and then many fishers get fish like this," he said.

Masum Billah said: "We fishers go to sea hoping for big fish. But for the last few years there have been fewer fish, and fewer big ones too. After a long time I got a big fish, though I caught little else. I felt very good today."

Apu Saha, senior fisheries officer of Kalapara upazila, said big hilsa essentially bring good news for fishers. As well as deep-sea fishers, coastal fishers are now also catching large hilsa, he said.

Source: Jagonews24. First published in Bengali on The Agro News.